McCONNACHIE, Helen (DNA Linked) ^{2 3}

   Cause of her death was senility.

   Other names for Helen were McCONNACHIE, Ellen,⁶ McCONNACHIE, Helen,⁷ McCONNOCHIE, Ellen,⁸ McGONIGAL, Ellen ⁶ and McGONIGAL, Helen.^{3 7}

   User ID: A60.

  General Notes:

Helen McConnachie was born in the summer of 1887 to Catherine Vallely and Henry McConnachie, a quarryman. They had been married just over three years earlier at Cleland on the 10 March 1884. Cleland was the nearest village to Spoutscroft where they lived, and where Helen was born, and both Spoutscroft and Cleland came under the larger administrative parish area of the West District of Shotts. Helen's father, Henry, or Harry as he was known, notified the registrar of her birth on 25 July 1887 at Cleland, and made his X mark, witnessed by George Loudon, the Assistant Registrar.

The 1891 census recorded the McConnachie family living at number 14 Spoutscroft. Ellen had two sisters at that time. She was 3 years old and was the middle sister.

In 1901 Ellen McConnochie was recorded as 13 years old by the census of that year. She was the second eldest child of the six in the family then recorded by the enumerator. She had been born in Shotts parish, as had all of her family except their father. She was a scholar.

In 1911 Ellen McConnachie married Francis McGonigal. By 1927 the couple had eight children, four boys and four girls. Then suddenly Helen was left a widow in 1932 when her husband was killed in a fatal colliery accident.

In 1946 her youngest daughter Helen died of tuberculosis, aged 19 years, and soon after, in 1950, her son Henry died too.

When she herself died in 1975, Helen had been a widow for over 40 years. She was 87 years old. ^{2 4 8 9}

  Research Notes:

A MEDICAL EXPRESSION

'Senility' is the medical term for the general infirmities of old age, and does not in this context have the connotations it may have in contemporary speech.

  Medical Notes:

The cause of death was certified by Dr William A. Brown.

The registrar, R. Richmond, was notified of Helen's death by her son Michael, who signed 'M. Gonigal' on 11 June 1975. He gave his address as 40 King's Lynn Drive, Glasgow. ⁴

  Noted events in her life were:

1. Time of birth: at 2.00 pm.

2. Time of death: at 6.00 pm.

Helen married Francis McGUNNIGAL (DNA Linked), son of James McGUNNIGAL and Mary ROURKE, on 12 October 1911 in RC Chapel, Cleland, Lanarkshire, Scotland.¹ (Francis McGUNNIGAL (DNA Linked) was born on 6 June 1886 in High Rows, Chapelhall, Holytown, Lanarkshire, Scotland,¹⁰ died on 30 April 1932 in Foulshiels Colliery, Stoneyburn, West Lothian, Scotland ^{11 12} and was buried in 1932 in St Patrick's RC Cemetery, New Stevenson, Lanarkshire, Scotland ¹³.). The cause of his death was the severity of the injuries he sustained as a result of a colliery accident.

  Marriage Notes:

The marriage took place after banns according to the rites and forms of the Roman Catholic Church. The celebrating priest was Peter Murray. The witnesses were James McGonigal, the groom's brother, and Maggie McConnachie, Ellen's sister.

The groom, Francis McGonigal, was resident at Main Street, Chapelhall. He was a coal miner aged 25 years and was unmarried. His father was deceased and his mother had remarried.

Ellen McConnachie, the bride, was resident at Ashfield Place, Parkside, Cleland. She too was unmarried. She was 24 years old. Her mother, Catherine, was dead, but her father was still living.

The marriage was registered on 13 October 1911 at Cleland, the registrar being Robert M. Brown. ¹